Football Focus

When the programme was launched in 1974, it formed part of the long-running Grandstand Saturday afternoon programme, but from August 2001, it was a stand-alone show, and Grandstand was discontinued in 2007. The programme is now a weekly magazine, with reports from across the country at all levels of English and Scottish football. It previews the weekend's fixtures and provides updates from the early Premier League game. Since BBC have the rights to Premier League highlights, Football Focus also shows the key moments from the midweek matches. Prior to the launch of Match of the Day 2, it was often the first chance for free-to-air viewers to see analysis of the Sunday and Monday Premier League games.

• pre-1974: - First presenter Sam Leitch
• 1974–1994: Bob Wilson (departed to join ITV as its main football presenter)
• 1994–1996: Steve Rider (host of Football Focus and Grandstand and Focus for two seasons, then dropped Focus)
• 1996–1999: Gary Lineker (previously pundit then presented after Steve Rider dropped Focus, went on to front Match of the Day)
• 1999–2004: Ray Stubbs (left to present Final Score on Saturday afternoons, left BBC in 2009 to move to ESPN)
• 2004–2009: Manish Bhasin (left to become presenter of The Football League Show)
• 2009–present: Dan Walker[2]

Guest presenters

• 2018: Seema Jaswal (one episode)[3]
• 2016: Eilidh Barbour (presented during 2016 Olympics while Dan Walker was in Rio)
• 2014: Mark Chapman (presented a World Cup special edition)[4]
• 2007, 2008: Jake Humphrey (presented during 2007 Ashes and Cricket World Cup while Manish was presenting BBC coverage. Also was main host during Euro 2008 Football Focus)
• 2005: Mark Pougatch

The theme song for the programme is different for each new season. For the 2002–03 season it was "Backaround" by Elevator Suite. The 2003–04 season featured a cover of the Stevie Nicks track "Stand Back" by Linus Loves featuring Sam Obernik. For the 2007–08 season it was "Kill The Director" by The Wombats and for the 2009–10 season it was "Jetstream" by Doves, from the album Kingdom of Rust. For 2012-13 it was "Undegpedwar" by Y Niwl from the self-titled album, and in a break with tradition continued as the theme for 2013–14.

The programme is broadcast from BBC Sport's headquarters and main studios in MediaCityUK in Salford, although some episodes are broadcast on location, from football grounds around the country. The studio is located at the dock10 studios facility.[5]

Ahead of the 2019–20 Premier League season, BBC Sport upgraded the studio that Match of the Day, Match of the Day 2, Football Focus, and Final Score broadcasts from. The facility uses a "4K UHD ready virtual reality studio." It uses Epic Games' Unreal Engine 4 rendering technology.

A version of the programme focusing on world football airs on BBC World News.[6]

• On the Ball
• Saint and Greavsie

• Football Focus at BBC Programmes